Thursday, December 8, 2016

Art Brought to Life with Photon Sensor Data

I'm making progress toward my goal of creating a wifi-connected book that uses data to help tell a story. As a test of concept, I created a Thing HTTP app and a "React" app in ThingSpeak to trigger a Particle function (on one Photon) based upon readings from a Photocell (attached to a second Photon). To get started, I created a ThingSpeak channel and a Particle web hook by following this tutorial.

Once I created the web hook and connected my Photon to a light sensor, the Photon started logging the data on ThingSpeak. In order to make the data more useful, I modified the Photon code in the tutorial by adding the following lines to the loop, just above the line containing the Write API key for the ThingSpeak Channel.)

Next, I uploaded this code to a second Photon, connecting the Photon to a paper circuit using alligator clips. Lastly, I created the ThingHTTP and React apps.

The React app allowed me to set up a trigger related to the data. I set it up so that a reaction happens any time the sensor picks up a value of 150 or greater (when it's cloudy or dark and the resistance increases) or 50 and under (when it's bright or sunny) . The ThingHTTP app allowed me to post an HTTP request to Particle, triggering the Particle function that illuminates the owl's eyes and the candle flame.

For the first five years of my career, I taught middle and high school students history and language arts in Vermont. More recently, I've been teaching workshops related to the maker movement and educational tech.